Soluble coffee beverage products are well known products, which upon the addition of water (usually hot) provide a coffee beverage. It is also well known to mix the soluble coffee powder with soluble creamer or whitener powders to produce whitened coffee beverages. These classical soluble beverage products are coffee beverages without any foam on the upper surface.
Soluble coffee beverage products of the instant “cappuccino” type are also known and are commercially available. Usually these products are dry mixes of a soluble coffee powder and a soluble whitener powder. The soluble whitener powder contains pockets of gas, which, upon dissolution of the powder, produce foam. Therefore, upon the addition of water (usually hot), a whitened coffee beverage, which has a milk based foam on its upper surface, is formed; the beverage resembling, to a greater or less extent, traditional Italian cappuccino.
In coffee bars and restaurants, it is usual to serve freshly brewed black coffee that is prepared on the basis of roast and ground. The freshly brewed black coffee is characterized by a light brown foamy layer that covers the upper surface of the beverage. The coffee is usually prepared in an espresso-type machine in which one may, e.g., brew a short strong espresso or a larger cup of black coffee.
The light brown foamy layer on the espresso is not milk based, as is the case for cappuccino beverages, but it originates from the carbon dioxide and air captured in the coffee ground and that are released when the coffee is brewed. The foamy layer on an espresso is often referred to as a “crema”. The crema on a freshly brewed espresso is characterized as a light brown foamy layer, which covers substantially all the surface of the beverage, and remains on it during consumption.
The espresso-type beverage is generally found attractive to consumers. However, espresso-type beverages have a particular bitter taste, which to some consumers is considered to be too strong. A common problem when aiming to reduce bitterness of coffee beverage is that the coffee aroma will be diluted as well. Further, if, e.g., sugar is used to mask bitterness in a coffee beverage, once sufficient sugar has been added to the beverage, sugar becomes dominant in the cup profile. Milk, especially whole milk, may be used for balance of aggressive note of the coffee beverage and mask the potential process notes. However, milk as such is found not to be sufficient for masking the bitterness of the coffee beverage.
Accordingly, there is a need for a new soluble coffee beverage, which is an alternative to the above-discussed soluble beverage powder, and to one that is reminiscent of a freshly brewed espresso-type beverage.